Diaper washer and storage receptacle



May 9, 1967 R- w. BARKS DIAPER WASHER AND STORAGE RECEPTACLE 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Aug. 2, 1963 ATTORNEY My 9, 1967 R. w. BARKS 3,318,119

DIAPER WASHER AND STORAGE RECEPTACLE Filed Aug. 2, 1963 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 I INVENTOR.

ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,318,119 DIAPER WASHER AND STORAGE RECEPTACLE Robert W. Barks, Chadds Ford, Pa., assignor to Satellite Developing Corporation, a corporation of Delaware Filed Aug. 2, 1963, Ser. No. 299,614 4 Claims. (Cl. 68-132) This invention relates generally to devices adapted to rinse, soak and wash diapers.

The machine of this invention is a spherical container designed to sit on top of a toilet or adjacent thereto with a discharge hose running into the toilet, is filled through a flexible tube from a faucet and is hand or power agitated to rinse, wash and soak soiled diapers.

A particular feature of this invention is the novel and improved convex self cleaning baffle and drain plate which more effectively separates the diapers and soiled matter during rinsing and flushes the latter during draining.

Another feature is the agitator paddles formed of bent wire rod which can be rapidly turned and thoroughly rinse the diapers with only a small application of force.

A third novel feature of this invention is the adapter ring which allows the washer to be rapidly and securely attached and detached to the many size toilet bowls currently in use.

This invention is an improvement on another form of diaper washer shown in my US. Patent No. 3,007,329. The diaper washer will be explained more fully in the drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 is a side elevation of the diaper washer on top of the toilet bowl;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged cross section of the diaper washer shown in FIG. 1;

-FIG. 3 is a cross section taken on lines 3-3 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a plan view;

FIG. 5 is a modified form of the washer res-ting inside a cylindrical base adjacent to the toilet;

FIG. 6 is another modification of the diaper washer having an electric agitator instead of a hand operated agitator.

The diaper washer has a spherical body 1 formed of two semi-spherical sections 2 and 2', held together by a suitable fastening or trim 3. The preferred size of the diaper washer will be approximately 15 inches in diameter which will enable the washer to hold 8 gallons of water in addition to a full load of diapers.

A particular advantage of this large capacity is that when the drain is opened and the contents are dumped into the toilet bowl, the bowl will automatically flush itself.

Suitable handles 4 for carrying the diaper washer are provided. The washer is attached to a circular base plate 6 which in turn is detachably secured to an adapter ring 7. These adapter rings are designed to fit on the many size toilet bowls currently in use. The rear key portion 28 is slid under the seat of the toilet between the two balls holding the seat to the bowl. At the front of the adapter are two slots 29 which contain adjustable bowl grippers 30. These grippers 30 when adjusted for the particular toilet bowl allow the adapter ring and the washer to be inserted and removed without further adjusting the grippers. When installed, the adapter ring will be securely attached to the toilet bowl to insure that accidental jarring of the washer will not dislodge it. I

The washer is provided with a discharge nozzle 8 in whose opening a drain valve 9 is normally seated. This drain valve is actuated by rod 10 passing through a hole in the drain plate 11 and is hand operated by a valve handle 12 on top of the washer. The handle mechanism 3,3 18,1 19 Patented May 9, 1967 is designed to fully open the valve with quarter turn and to close and lock it upon returning of the handle to its original position.

The washer contains two agitators 13 in the form of doubled wire or rods, driven through suitable gearing 14 by an agitator arm and handle 15.

Water is introduced into the washer through a flexible tube 16 connected at any convenient passageway 17 near the top of the washer. The other end of the tube is connee-ted through a suitable adapter to a nearby faucet 18. A loading opening 19 together with a. hinged door 20 and locking handle 21 is also provided for inserting and removing diapers.

A specially designed drain plate 11, upwardly concave and generally rectangular is provided. This drain plate is attached at its four corners near the bottom of the washer and allows the water and soiled matter to pass through the four openings between the sides of the plate and the inside wall of the washer. The passageway will, of course, not be large enough to allow a diaper to pass or become trapped.

A modified form of the washer is shown in FIG. 5 Where the washer rests on a circular stand 22 adjacent to but not interfering with the normal operation of the toilet. Here a flexible discharge tube 23 is also provided which may be directed into the toilet or secured to the stand out of the way of the toilet and with the open end above the discharge nozzle and to prevent dripping on the floor.

This stand may also be provided near the bottom with doors 24 opening into shelf space 25 in which clean diapers and other bathing supplies may be easily stored. The entire stand and washer may also be easily moved from place to place on suitable wheels or casters.

FIG. 6 illustrates another modified form of the washer wherein the agitators are run by a small electrical motor 26. This is particularly advantageous since the rinsing and washing cycle take up to several minutes each.

The diaper washer can be operated to remove all of the soiled material from a diaper, thereby eliminating the necessity for washing in an ordinary electric machine before drying.

To operate, the washer is first filled with water and each freshly soiled diaper is immediately put in the washer. After inserting each diaper into the washer, the agitator should be operated for several revolutions to initially rinse the diaper and separate most of the soiled material which will fall to the bottom of the washer as the diaper continues to float near the surface of the water. When an entire load of diapers, perhaps fifteen, have been so rinsed, the valve handle is opened draining the water through the discharge tube at the bottom. The force of the water sweeping over the drain plate and through the four openings will insure that all of the soiled material will be carried out the drain leaving only the diapers in the Washer. Repeated brief rinsings may then be carried out followed by an initial wash or deodorizing or a disinfecting of the diapers.

I claim: 1. A diaper washer comprising: 7 (a) a spherical housing to contain the diapers during washing, having an opening through which to insert and remove the diapers, a water inlet opening, and a drain nozzle in the lower portion of said housing;

(b) rotating agitators extending into said housing in the upper portion thereof for scrubbing the diapers in and rinsing them with the water; and

(c) an upwardly convex drain plate installed in the bottom of the housing above said drain nozzle between said agitator and the bottom inner surface of said housing and having portions of its edge in spaced relation from the inner surface of said housing to form a discharge passage to said drain nozzle.

2. A diaper Washer comprising:

(a) a spherical housing to contain the diapers during Washing, having an opening through which to insert and remove the diapers, a water inlet opening and a discharge nozzle,

(b) rotating agitators within said housing to scrub th diapers in and rinse them with the water; and

(c) an upwardly convex rectangular drain plate installed in the bottom of the washer and attached to the housing at each corner, having portions of its edge in spaced relation from the inner surface of said housing and forming discharge passages to said discharge nozzle.

3. The diaper washer of claim 1 in which the agitators each include blades formed by looped wire rods.

4. The diaper washer of claim 3 further including means for manually rotating the agitators.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 944,285 12/1909 Shank 68-57 X 1 945,131 1/1910 Mallory 6855 1,440,192 12/1922 White 68-208 X 1,737,115 11/1929 Jones 68208 2,329,623 9/1943 Judy 68-181 2,554,422 5/ 1951 Richards 4239 2,657,564 11/1953 Graham 6853 X 2,716,244 8/1955 Wendel 4239 2,959,043 11/1960 Johnson 68181 X 2,972,878 2/1961 Dickey 68181 IRVING BUNEVICH, Primary Examiner. 

1. A DIAPER WASHER COMPRISING: (A) A SPHERICAL HOUSING TO CONTAIN THE DIAPERS DURING WASHING, HAVING AN OPENING THROUGH WHICH TO INSERT AND REMOVE THE DIAPERS, A WATER INLET OPENING, AND A DRAIN NOZZLE IN THE LOWER PORTION OF SAID HOUSING; (B) ROTATING AGITATORS EXTENDING INTO SAID HOUSING IN THE UPPER PORTION THEREOF FOR SCRUBBING THE DIAPERS IN AND RINSING THEM WITH THE WATER; AND (C) AN UPWARDLY CONVEX DRAIN PLATE INSTALLED IN THE BOTTOM OF THE HOUSING ABOVE SAID DRAIN NOZZLE BETWEEN SAID AGITATOR AND THE BOTTOM INNER SURFACE OF SAID HOUSING AND HAVING PORTIONS OF ITS EDGE IN SPACED RELATION FROM THE INNER SURFACE OF SAID HOUSING TO FORM A DISCHARGE PASSAGE TO SAID DRAIN NOZZLE. 